Filling mechanism



T'I J Nov. 24, 1959 M. BATTINICH 2,914,097

FILLING MECHANISM Filed July 17, 1956 II: I.

MITCHELL BATT/N/CH\ A OR/VEYS 1 2,914,097 FILLING MECHANISM Mitchell Battinich, San'Leandro, Calif. Application July 17, 1956, Serial No. 598,371 8 Claims. (Cl. 141-286) The present invention relates to an improved filling mechanism including a valve particularly adapted for successive opening and closing to fill containers engaging same.

Valves or filling apparatus of the type herein contemplated are sometimes termed syrup valves" in the fruit packing industry, wherein they find wide application, although not exclusive use; andin this field, for example, common employment of the valve lies in the metering of fruit syrup to successive containers of fruit engaged with the valve. The present invention includes the well known advantages of prior valves in this field and in addition provides further features of particular advantage not hitherto known.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved filling mechanism and valve adapted to vent containers filled therewith.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved liquid filling machine providing efiicient high speed filling of successive engaging containers.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved filling mechanism. for filling containers and adapted in closed position to vent filled containers.

'It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved filling 'mechanism facilitating removal of successive engaging containers.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by the said drawing and description may be adopted within the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the filling mechanism in center section.

Figure 2 is a sectional plan view of the structure taken at 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view of themechanism taken at 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken at 44 of Figure l in a plane rotated ninety degrees from that of Figure 1.

Considering now the structural details of the illustrated embodiment of the invention and referring to A United States Patent periphery and which is adapted to fit in sliding relation I in a circular opening in the bottom of a bowl 12, adapted to contain a fluid such as syrup to be dispensed by the valve. A second valve element or lower plate 13 is disposed immediately below the top plate in planar contact therewith and in fixed position so that the top plate 11 is rotatable thereon. The lower plate fixation is herein accomplished by making the lateral dimensions at least in part greater than the diameter of the opening in the bowl and securing the lower plate to the bowl, as by fasteners such as bolts 14 passing through the bowl into threaded engagement with the lower plate.

In the top plate 11 there are provided four equally spaced apertures or bores 1619 disposed equidistant from the axis or center of the plate. The bores 16--19 extend transversely through the top plate and are disposed ninety degrees apart. Three of the bores 1618 are preferably circular in cross section and of the same size while the fourth or filler aperture is elongated circumferentially of the bore circle for reasons noted below. The bores 16 and 18 adjacent the filler aperture 19 serve as vacuum release holes and they are threaded to receive tubes 21 and 22 disposed in the bores 16 and 18 respectively and extending upward therefrom. The tubes 21 and 22 have suflicient length to extend above. any liquid level in the bowl so that air may freely escape upward therethrough. The other bore 17 in the top plate opposite the filler aperture 19 serves as a vent and is also threaded to receive an elongated vent tube 23 extending upward therefrom the same height as the tubes 21 and 22.

As regards the lower plate 13 there are provided therein a pair of diametrically opposed vertical apertures 26 and 27 each positioned at the same distance from the center or axis of plate 11 as the bores 16-19 in the latter so as to be adapted for registry with alternate pairs of the latter in successive rotational positions of the top plate.

The lower end'of the structure is completed by container engaging means as well as straining and adjusting means and in construction this may include an apertured disc strainer 28 having a central boss extending upward therefrom with an axial threaded opening receiving an oversized adjusting bolt 29 in threaded engagement. This adjusting bolt 29 further extends upward into threaded engagement with the lower plate 13 at a central aperture thereof and a spacer plate 31 is disposed in fixed relation beneath the lower plate with a pair of vertical apertures 32 and 33 mating with the lower plate apertures 26 and 27. The adjusting nut 29 and strainer boss extend centrally through the spacer plate 31 with the strainer boss rotatably disposed in a central aperture therein. A resilient ring 34 is disposed about the under side of the lower plate outward of the spacer plate 31 and having a slanted under surface for engaging in fluid tight contact the upper rim of a container 36 forced thereagainst from below. Additionally a cylinder 37 may be disposed between the spacer plate 31 and resilient ring 34 and extending downward therefrom in sliding contact with the outer strainer periphery so that in raising or lowering of the strainer by the adjusting bolt 29 no leakage path is provided about the strainer disc.

Control of the mechanism of the present invention is accomplished by relative rotation of the top plate 11 and lower plate 13 and there is herein illustrated to that end an elongated vertical shaft 38 secured as in a removable fashion atop the top plate 11 and extending substantially above same. A cam member 39 having a number of transverse arms is mounted atop the shaft 38 for engagement with cams, not shown for rotating the shaft and attached top plate.

With regard to the operation of the present invention consider first the valve position depicted in Figure 4. Communication is provided from the bowl interior, i.e., above the bottom of the bowl 12 through the top plate filler aperture 19 and communicating lower plate opening 26 through the support plate opening 32 and the strainer 28 into the interior of a can or other container pressing in sealing relation against the resilient ring 34. At the same time an air vent for the container is provided via the strainer and aligned spacer plate opening 33, lower plate opening 27 and top plate vent hole 17 and thence through the large vent pipe 23 to a point above any liquid level in the bowl. Adjustment of the volume of the container filled .by fluid passing through the valve is provided by the strainer 28 which may be raised or lowered to control the remaining container volume below the strainer.

Operation as contemplated in the herein described cir cumstances may include continued revolving of the bowl 12 and does include periodic ninety degree rotation of the shaft 38 from the cam element 39 by meansnot shown whereby the top plate rapidlyrotates ninety degrees relative to the lower plate and remains thereat for some predetermined period of time. Rotation of the top plate 11 ninety degrees places the valve elements in the relative relation shown in Figure 1 wherein the two top plate bores 16 and 18 are aligned with the lower plate openings to communicate with the interior of the container and at the same time the top plate filler aperture 19 and vent aperture 17 are closed by alignment with unapertured portions of the lower plate. This clearly prevents fluid from flowing into the container for the release tubes 21 and 22'extend above the fluid level, however, this is not generally of prime importance as in most conventional practice the container is filled before valve rotation. What is of major interest, however, is the solution herein presented to the common dilficulty of container removal from the valve. Rapid container filling as is desired not only displaces an equal amount of air through the vent tube 23 but also operates to create sufiicient vacuum within the container to hold same to the valve even as against a substantial removal force. This difiiculty in container removal has proven to be a major obstacle in the artand is herein entirely removed as an obstacle. Thus in the closed valve position of Figure 1 the container 36 is connected through the lower plate openings 26 and 27 and top plate bores 16 and 18 to the release tubes 21 and 22 communicating with the atmosphere so that the vacuum within the container 36 is immediately broken and the container is removable even by its own weight.

Immediately following container removal another container to be filled with fluid in the bowl is pressed upward against the resilient ring 34 and held thereagainst while the top valve plate is rotated another ninety degrees to now place the filler aperture in registry with the other lower plate opening 27 and the vent pipe 23 in communication with the container interior via the top plate bore 17 and lower plate opening 26. Please note that in the laststated operation the enlarged filler aperture size is highly advantageous in providing advanced bowl-container communication to hasten filling and to thereby accomplish a desired minimization of filling time.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved filling mechanism comprising a first plate and a second plate both having a common axis and contacting fiat surfaces thereof, said first plate having four holes therethrough spaced equal circumferential distance apart and equidistant from said axis and defining a filling opening and a plurality of vent openings, said second plate defining only two diametrically opposed open ings on the same radial spacing from said axis as the holes in said first plate whereby ninety degree relative rotation of said plates places the second plate openings in alternate successive registry with two diametrically opposed holes of said first plate for selective venting and fluid passage therethrough.

2. An improved filling mechanism comprising means for sealingly engaging containers to be filled, a movable valve element having a filler aperture and at least two vent apertures therein, a stationary valve element having a pair of openings therethrough, and means for moving said valve element between an open position wherein said filler aperture and one vent aperture communicates with the engaged container through said openings and a closed position where the other vent aperture communicates with the engaged container through one of said openings and said filler aperture is blocked from registry with both of said openings.

3; An improved'filling mechanism adapted for mounting in the bottom of a bowl containing syrup and the like comprising a stationary member having means for sealingly engaging successive containers beneath said bowl and a pair of apertures therethrough, a movable valve member overlying said stationary member and having a filler aperture and a plurality of vent apertures with vent tubes extending above the latter for communication with the atmosphere, and means moving said movable valve member between an open position wherein said filler aperture and at least one vent aperture communicates with said pair of apertures and with the interior of said container and a closed position wherein said filler aperture is closed from either of said pair of apertures and at least one vent aperture communicates with the interior of an engaged container through at least one of said pair of fluid to be dispensed and including a pair of spaced aper-- tures therethrough, a second plate adapted to slidably rotate on said first plate and having four equally spaced apertures therethrough with vent pipes extending upward from three of said four apertures, and means rotating said second plate between an open position wherein one vent aperture and the aperture having no pipe are aligned with the second plate apertures and a closed position where the remaining vent apertures in said first plate are aligned with the apertures in said second plate.

5. Liquid filling mechanism adapted for disposition in the bottom of a bowl of fluid and comprising a movable member and a fixed member having an opening therethrough and an annular sealing means about the bottom thereof for engagement with the rim of a container, means defining a filled aperture in said movable member, control'means moving said filler aperture between closed and open positions relative to said opening so as to controllably dispose said filler aperture in communication between bowl and container, and vent means communieating betwen atmosphere and container interior through said movable and fixed members in both closed and open positions thereof.

6'. An improved filling mechanism as defined in claim 5 further defined by a body movably mounted at the bottom of said fixed member within said sealing means for controlled vertical position adjustment whereby the container volume to be filled is controllable.

7. A filling mechanism comprising a stationary plate having a pair of transverse apertures therethrough at equal radii on opposite sides of. a transverse plate axis, a movable plate in planar contact with said stationary plate and adapted to rotate about the stationary plate axis in sliding relation upon said stationary plate, said first plate having four equally spaced transverse apertures therethrough on the same radii as the stationary apertures, three vent tubes secured to said movable plate and extending from three of the apertures therein away from the stationary plate, and means rotating said movable plate between a first position aligning two of the movable plate apertures with the stationary plate apertures and a second position aligning the other two movable plate apertures with the two stationary plate apertures.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 further defined by said movable plate defining the aperture therein not connected to a vent pipe as an opening elongated along the circumference of the aperture circle, an annular resilient member disposed on the opposite side of the stationary plate from the movable plate and adapted to engage the rim of a container to be filled, and a strainer within the resilient member having a considerable bulk and mounted for motion normal to the stationary plate to control the container volume to be filled.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 350,675 Hathaway Oct. 12, 1886 1,962,161 Thompson June 12, 1934 2,401,674 Vizay June 4, 1946 

